Lakers Told To Make Klay Thompson Move Due To Kawhi Leonard And Kevin Durant

Rumors are bubbling away, and Klay Thompson was the last player to join a LA rumor.

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith believes that Thompson is a much better fit alongside LeBron James when compared to Kevin Durant or Kawhi Leonard.

The Lakers have a nice salary cap space to land a star in the offseason as they are trying to boost the roster. Durant, Leonard and Thompson are just some of the names that got in the same conversation with King James and LA.

Smith goes with Thompson

If you ask Smith, he would say that Thompson is the best option LA needs at the moment. He dropped 44 points from 17-of-20 from the field and 10-of-11 from beyond the arc in the Warriors’ win on Monday night.

LeBron plays best when surrounded with brilliant shooters. Landing Thompson means weakening the Golden State and boosting the roster.

“It’s not about who’s better, it’s about chopping down the alternatives,” Smith said. “Kawhi Leonard and LeBron James? Both want to be ball dominant, that’s problematic. Kevin Durant, not sure he wants to be in LA, we saw what he said earlier about being with LeBron was toxic and he had to scale back because LeBron got offended by the word toxic. Take those two things into consideration along with the fact Anthony Davis needs to be traded, which means you need co-operation from the New Orleans Pelicans, the most viable target is a person who is a free agent.

“Although he says he wants to be a Warrior for life, he didn’t sign the extension when he had an opportunity to this offseason, questions or not whether he could change his mind. It’s not an accident he put on that kind of show at Staples Center against the Lakers. Let’s get into the complimentary factor. Of course Thompson is not better than Kawhi, Durant or Davis but he’s an elite defender and an elite shooter. If you’re the Lakers, what do you need most? Those two components, more so than anything. You don’t need a playmaker more than you need that, because you have LeBron.

“As he gets older he says he doesn’t want to go in that direction, but the reality is we know he can and when it really, really counts – the coach gives LeBron the ball and he makes decision. The only shooter LeBron has had in his career comparable to Thompson was Ray Allen in Miami, championships. Kyle Korver in Cleveland was a non-factor come post-season because the Warriors could put him on lock and key even though he was productive in the post-season. The lethalness of Klay’s shooting range, he could pull up from the parking lot for crying out loud! 

“I consider Steph Curry is the greatest shooter I’ve seen in my life but you can make the argument Klay can give anyone in history a run for their money when it comes to catch and shooting and set shooting, not off the dribble. When you’ve got somebody like LeBron, guess what most of your shots are going to be? Off the screens or set shots. When I look at that, I’m saying Thompson could be just as formidable – and the fact he’s coming from Golden State, peels him away from them, and I think puts the Lakers right in that championship picture where they belong.”

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